F1: Kobayashi wants "courage" at Caterham

Kamui Kobayashi feels the Caterham Formula 1 team needs to show "more courage" if it is to lift itself off the back of the grid.

The team has struggled to assert itself over Marussia in the fight for 10th in the constructors' championship so far this season, let alone bridge the gap to the midfield. Kobayashi feels Caterham needs to be more aggressive in developing its car, if it is to avoid the possibility of team owner Tony Fernandes walking away from F1 at the end of the season.

"It's a very difficult situation for us, but the boss is expecting more than what we are doing now and we need to react," Kobayashi said during the Spanish Grand Prix weekend. "We need more courage in the team. We need to work hard and be strong and then the boss will decide what he wants next year.

"Generally we're missing a lot of downforce – without this it's not easy. "That was quite clear and now everyone knows. We just need to find more. We need to take more risk.

"When I went to the factory for the first time [to see the car], the first words I said were, 'Wow, very conservative!' but nobody believed me. When I saw all the other cars I knew it was true. We need to change our mentality. We need more aggression."

Caterham announced last weekend that it was parting company with technical director Mark Smith and replacing him with a committee as part of a technical shake-up at the team.

Kobayashi and teammate Marcus Ericsson qualified their CT05s on the back row in Barcelona with times only good enough for 14th on the GP2 grid. Ericsson trailed home last of the classified finishers in the race, while Kobayashi retired with a brake problem.